As a kid in the late 50s I was able to do every part of bike maintenance except tuning spokes (I still can’t do that well and quickly). And that did include patching the tubes. Because where I grew up, there was a plant called “goat head” whose thorns would actually puncture an inner tube right through the tire… at least occasionally. And other even tougher sharp things. But I did figure out that my awesome looking bike was HEAVY, whereas my big brothers minimalist bike probably weighed half what mine did. My second bike was a lot more basic than the first. But it did have three “in the hub” gears.
As a kid in the late 50s I was able to do every part of bike maintenance except tuning spokes (I still can’t do that well and quickly). And that did include patching the tubes. Because where I grew up, there was a plant called “goat head” whose thorns would actually puncture an inner tube right through the tire… at least occasionally. And other even tougher sharp things. But I did figure out that my awesome looking bike was HEAVY, whereas my big brothers minimalist bike probably weighed half what mine did. My second bike was a lot more basic than the first. But it did have three “in the hub” gears.